The other day, I accidentally stumbled upon a very…..well ‘interesting’ program called MATCH KA MUJRIM on one of our contemporary, ever-so-informative news channels…I emphasize accidentally. The format of this program is that of a debate….huh?....yes that’s right…a debate about who the culprit of a certain match was. I followed the program for a few days…groan….why?...I don’t have an answer to that.

Mr. Bishan Singh Bedi (one of India’s former greats), Mr. Zaheer Abbas (great batsman of his time) and Mr. Sayeed Kirmani (one of the couple of great wicketkeepers of India and Dhoni, only until he fails in an innings), were standing on 3 podiums with a host and an audience. I dared not to switch channels (big mistake).

The viewing audience also got to vote to decide who they thought was the culprit (Saurav Ganguly everyday apparently). The viewing audience being much better qualified than the players on the international arena, this was a given.

I was dazed by the end of the program. Debate? NOT!...The only person speaking seemed to be Mr. Bedi. The only point stressed upon…how bad Saurav Ganguly was…?????....yes…with meek attempts from time to time by the other two, to make their points, only to be flooded by Mr. Bedi about…of course….how bad Saurav Ganguly was.

Lets not forget the wonderful audience…have you ever seen a pack of gazelles? They all act in the exact same way all the time. This audience was no different and not by any means, superior. One moment, they hooted Saurav, the next moment Mr. Kirmani mumbled something positive about Saurav….presto….they would all cheer Saurav…only to be flooded by Mr. Bedi’s powerful point making about…take a guess…how bad Saurav Ganguly was.

It was a strange coincidence that every time Mr. Kirmani started making a valid positive point about Saurav..Mr. Bedi and the hostess of the program started screaming at his face…the latter wanted to take a commercial break, and Mr. Bedi wanted to make a new, very valid point….Saurav Ganguly is terrible.

The point of the program…need I say? Of course….how bad Saurav Ganguly was.

We would indeed be lost without the wonderful unbiased media that operates in our country. Three cheers for the Indian media…..SAURAV GANGULY IS TERRIBLE! SAURAV GANGULY IS TERRIBLE! SAURAV GANGULY IS TERRIBLE!